TMNT and Jo--The Promise
by BBPRIMEFAN101
Summary: 4-year-old Josephine keeps on having these bad dreams about her family, one of them causing her to make a life-long promise.


Summary: 4-year-old Josephine keeps on having these bad dreams about her family, one of them causing her to make a life-long promise.  
**I don't, and NEVER will, own anything TMNT related!  
**

Josephine moaned in her sleep. She fretted with her blanket while tossing and turning in her bed. Her freckled face had a look of distress as she rolled around, knocking her blanket on the floor. She began to mutter, now shifting more violently. "...No...no-no...No!"

She abruptly sat up with a gasp. Jo breathed heavily as her heart pounded in her chest. She looked frantically around her room, realizing she was engulfed in darkness. She couldn't see anything, she could only feel her cot.

"Daddy," she whispered, then raised her voice with each cry. "Daddy. Daddy! Daddy!" She was relieved when she saw her father open her door and let the light into her room. She didn't know if she was crying from relief or from fear. All she knew was that she was crying. Hamato Yoshi raced to his daughter and comforted her.

"There, there, Josephine. It is alright," he said softly, gently rubbing her back. "I am here. Now," he positioned her to where they made eye contact, "what troubles you, my child?"

Joey sniffled and rubbed her eyes. "I-I had a bad dream, Daddy."

He sighed. "Again? Josephine, this is the fifth nightmare in a row. Have you any idea of what is causing them?"

Jo just shook her head and moaned. "Do you want to talk about it? It may help you feel better," he spoke gently to her.

Josephine took a few deep breaths before speaking. "I...We were all going on a walk in the tunnels. We were all happy. T-Then there was a loud booming sound. The walls fell down on us. When the dust cleared...I-I...rocks were on top of you and my brothers. I tried to get them off...but I just couldn't. I wasn't...strong enough. The rocks...they crushed you...and I was alone." She sobbed in Yoshi's kimono.

Splinter gazed at her sadly. For someone so young to dream of something so horrible...it broke his heart. "There, there, Josephine. It is alright. It was just a bad dream. It is not real. Nothing will happen to any of us."

Joey sniffled and nodded. Then she looked beyond her father and gasped.

"Master Splinter?" said a voice. The humanoid rat turned his head to see nine-year-old Raphael standing in the doorway of Jo's new room, half-asleep, rubbing his eyes. "What's going on?"

"Raphael. This not of your concern. Go back to bed, my son." Splinter said sternly.

But before Raph could do as his father demanded, Joey jumped out of her bed and raced into her red-banded brother's arms. "Raphie," she wept.

Raph stared at his human sister in shock, then looked to his father. "Sensei?"

"Josephine had a nightmare. It seems she fears for your safety," Splinter explained.

Raph nodded and looked at his sister. "Hey, it's okay, Jo-Jo. S'just a nightmare. It ain't real. Ain't nothing gonna happen ta me." Jo looked up to him and weakly smiled. "You wanna sleep wit' me tonight?" Joey nodded sleepily and looked to her father for permission. He gave a nod, and Raph carried her off to his room. She slept soundly the rest of the night.

Josephine woke up in Raphael's room alone, but she heard her brothers' voices. She slipped out of his bed and tip-toed into the hall where her brothers were. She hid behind the wall and listened. She heard Leonardo and Donatello laughing, Michelangelo squealing, and Raph growling. Obviously Mikey did something to tick Raph off and he was chasing him, and Leo and Don were laughing at it.

She weakly smiled, but that smile vanished quickly as her nightmare returned to her thoughts. She shuddered and looked to the floor, hugging herself. _Nothing will happen to any of us..._Splinter's voice rang in his head. She closed her eyes, fighting back tears. "I'll make sure it stays that way..." _I promise...I promise to never, ever, let anything or anyone hurt you...my brothers...my father...I won't let anything happen to you...not while I am still breathing. I will hold this vow until I have fulfilled it. No matter what happens to make that day come_. _I promise. _She stood up and slowly walked away from the wall.

Jo and her brothers were playing tag on a walk in the sewer tunnels while they went exploring, and Raph was it.

"Na na na-na na! You can't get us!" Mikey taunted.

Raph growled and leaped forward, tackling Mikey and rolling around on the floor. He pinned him to the ground and smirked. "Now, you're it."

"Guys, we have to be careful. Splinter said these tunnels are old," said Donnie. "There's a chance that they could collapse, with us in them."

Josephine gasped sharply as images of her last nightmare filled her mind. She jumped up and exclaimed, "In that case, let's not make that happen. Can we go home, now?"

"Why you wanna go home so early?" asked Raph. "We only been out 'ere for-" he stopped at the way Jo looked at him, and then he knew. "Oh. Okay."

"What? What is it?" Leo asked.

Raph looked to his oldest brother and back to his baby sister. "Okay if I tell 'em?" Jo slowly nods. "Okay, so Joey had a nightmare last night that a tunnel caved in on us and crushed us."

"Ohh," Leo moaned. "Really?" Raph nodded. Leo turned to his sister and hugged her. "It's okay, Jo-Jo. Nothing's gonna happen to us."

"Said the same thing to 'er," Raph said.

"I think Jo's right. We should get home," said Donnie and pointed up to the tunnel ceiling. "you see those cracks? They weren't there a minute ago. If we stay here, the ceiling may come down on us and crush us." Joey whimpered and buried her face. Donnie pulled out a map that led them back to the lair and headed in the recorded directions.

Dust started falling from the ceiling. "Let's pick up the pace, guys," said Leo, and they do so. Their footsteps echoed throughout the tunnel as they ran, making the dust fall faster and heavier. A low grumble filled the tunnel.

Mikey, being in the back, got covered in most of the dust. "_Hah...ha-ah...Haah-_" Raph covered his snout with his hand.

"Not. A. Sound. Got it?" he asked threateningly. Mikey nodded and they kept on walking.

"_Haaah...'TCHOOO!_"

Mikey's sneeze boomed through the tunnel. Then there was a low boom. Jo shuddered; that booming noise sound all too familiar. Then, a large rock crashed between Leo and Joey. She almost screams, but covered her mouth in time before she did.

"Couldn't hold it, could ya, Lame-Brain?" Raph scolded.

"I'm sorry! When you gotta you gotta," Mikey whined.

Another rock fell. "MOVE!" Leo yelled. They took off running; but the more they ran, the more rocks that fell around them. Joey had somewhat fallen behind, and she wearily looked up and saw a large clump of rocks ready to fall on her brothers. Her eyes widened. It was happening. It was real. She jumped forward and pushed them out of the way.

The turtles suddenly lurched forward as a loud crash rang our behind them. They fell to the ground with a thud. Coughing and sputtering, they checked to see if everyone was okay.

"Where's Joey?" asked Donnie. Then they all noticed the giant rock pile behind them. "...Oh, no."

"Josephine!" Leo cried.

"Jo-Jo!" Raph and Mikey wailed simultaneously.

They all ran to the rock pile and tried to pull away the rocks. "It's no good," Leo panted. "They're too heavy!"

"We have to keep trying! Our baby sister is in there!" Raph bellowed.

"I'm going to get Sensei!" Donnie cried and took off to the lair with the map in hand.

"Jo-Jo! Can you hear me!" shouted Mikey. There was no response. "Oh, God, Joey! D-Don't be dead, please, don't be-"

Raph grabbed his shoulders and shook him. "Don't say that!" he shrilled. "She-She's alive in there! She has to be..." He tried his best not to cry.

"My sons!" Splinter cried.

"Father!" Leo wept. "J-Josephine...she's in there!" he pointed to the rock pile. They all began to pull away at the rocks. After thirty minutes, they uncovered Josephine's body.

Splinter pulled her out of the rubble and cradled her body. She looked broken and battered; there was a deep gash on the side of her head. "Josephine...my daughter...wake up. Please...I do not want to lose another child. Please be alright." No response. He pressed a hand against her neck. There was a faint pulse. "She's alive," he sighed of relief as he felt light breathing exit her nostrils. "We must get back, now!" He carried her the way back to the lair with his sons right behind him.

Josephine woke up to a dreadful headache. She tried to sit up, but something pressed her back down. "Lay down, my child," said a watery, familiar voice. "You must rest."

"...D-Daddy?"

"Yes, Josephine, I am here."

"M-My brothers...where...?" Joey began.

"We're right here," said Raph. Jo turned her head to see her brothers sitting in a corner of her new room. They all stood up and approached the side of her bed. Splinter got up and left to re-soak her wet rag.

"Why, Jo-Jo?" Donnie shook his head. "Why did you do that?"

_"Because I made a promise," _Jo wanted to say, but she just couldn't. Not yet. "You're my big brothers. You didn't deserve to be crushed."

"Neither did you," Mikey said sadly.

"Joey, what you did was very brave, and stupid. You could've gotten yourself killed. Did you not think of how that would affect us, even Master Splinter? We thought you were dead, Hamato Josephine," Leo said sternly. Jo just closed her eyes and fought back tears.

"I know," she whispered.

"Give 'er a break," Raph nudged Leo. "She's been through enough."

Yoshi returned with a soaked rag and placed it on her forehead. "Rest now, my daughter." He kissed her forehead as she drifted off to sleep. The turtles each kissed her too and followed their father out of her room.

Joey heaved a sigh in her sleep, that day's earlier events playing through her mind. Despite nearly killing herself, she saved her brothers. She saved them. She kept her promise.

Joey satisfyingly smiled.


End file.
